


dive down deeper still

by ziodynes



Category: One Piece
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, M/M, basically a retelling of that One scene in wci you know the one.. i think about it way too much
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:08:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29291868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ziodynes/pseuds/ziodynes
Summary: It’s a bittersweet revelation, yet Sanji supposes that it may have been an inevitable one. Maybe everything was always hurdling towards this; every stolen look over washing dishes, every hug he protested at, every toothy grin with bits of food stuck on cheeks, and every fight that left his legs and hips aching.
Relationships: Monkey D. Luffy/Vinsmoke Sanji
Comments: 4
Kudos: 67





	dive down deeper still

It’s a bittersweet revelation, yet Sanji supposes that it may have been an inevitable one. Maybe everything was always hurdling towards this; every stolen look over washing dishes, every hug he protested at, every toothy grin with bits of food stuck on cheeks and every fight that left his legs and hips aching. 

Maybe he even knew it from that fateful day at the Baratie, just two years ago. When a boy with dreams larger than the sky and ocean crashed through the roof of the only true home he had ever known and offered him a new one. 

His throat is parched, his face is weary from sobs that wracked his entire body, his cheek stings with the impact of Luffy’s punch. Emptiness is not unfamiliar to Sanji, a hole in his stomach that no amount of time can erase the sensation of. But in the wake of spilling his guts out to his captain, of showing _weakness_ (and yes, Sanji knows he is not necessarily weak, that he is stronger now, but being treated like some—some pawn in a greater scheme, having to confront the cold eyes of his father again, well, he can only take so much) to that same boy who is well on his way to becoming a man, he almost feels all the despair that he had just poured out fill up once more. 

Then, Luffy looks down at him. He’s in a sorry state; better than before when he was shriveled up and on the verge of passing out, but still awful. Dirt is caked across his visage. There are bruises littered up and down his arms that are exposed from his tattered suit, his hair matted and blood surely coated into it. 

Despite all this, as his mouth stretches into that too familiar smile, taking up half the space of his face, one tooth missing, his eyes crinkling into crescents, Sanji thinks he’s the most beautiful boy he’s ever seen. Luffy tells him: “That’s just you, isn’t it?” 

Simply with those words, something else takes hold in that hole. Morning sunshine streams down over the field and the thousands of bodies scattered across it. The stench of drying mud mixed with blood is honestly a little overwhelming to Sanji, but in the presence of Luffy—commanding all attention, as per usual—he finds there’s nowhere he’d rather be right now.

And finally, he realizes. 

It’s not anything grand, no fireworks in the sky or rose in his hand like he spent countless days and nights imagining a moment like this would be. It’s more like the first time he came up with a recipe for the Baratie’s menu on his own, the last ingredient that would tie it all together striking him after too many errors, Zeff tasting the dish and giving him nothing more than a nod of approval. 

Luffy has not stopped smiling, absolutely ridiculously. A beam of light in the grimmest of situations. 

He thinks to himself: I love this boy. 

And it occurs to him that this love isn’t new, that it’s always been present. 

He loved Luffy when the boy threatened to sink the Baratie, grabbed him by his shirt, yelled at him that dying wasn’t any way to repay his debt to Zeff. He loved him when he climbed up a freezing mountain, pure grit carrying him forward to save both his and Nami’s lives. He loved him when the boy put everything on the line for Robin, declared war against the entire world for her (and recalling this, Sanji doesn’t know how he ever thought Luffy would turn away from another Emperor; logic was never in his arsenal), he loved him when he saw his calm figure and marked arm in the daily news after learning about the events of Marineford and fearing for his well-being, loved him even after two years apart, loved him when he was kicking his face, the face of his captain, into the ground over and over while Nami’s protests and his brothers’ snickers in the background fell to deaf ears.

The realization is mildly cruel. Perhaps due to the timing—for what demands can he make of Luffy that the boy is not already offering? Luffy has staked his dream away on getting Sanji back; his declaration still echoes faintly in his head, a declaration that’s been echoing since Luffy screamed his voice out at him from behind the Vinsmokes’ retreating carriage. 

His hands, gold bangles tying them down, shake slightly as this thought runs through his mind. Being grateful for this instance, yet also knowing that the love that Luffy gives unconditionally not only to him, but all the Strawhats, is not one that he deserves, especially now. 

But as usual, Luffy takes none of this into consideration. He doesn’t pay attention to honor, to previous codes, to any of that. Luffy storms a path that is so furiously _his_ , and he won’t be swayed by what others consider right and wrong, respectful and disrespectful.

His captain kneels down, bringing those trembling hands into his own. There’s a contrast between the worn and rough calluses on Luffy’s upper palms and the scar-free and untouched surface of Sanji’s that reminds him of his role, that again makes him picture the hungry grins of all the Strawhats watching him in expectation. 

Smoothing circles into them, Luffy grips his hands once, and exclaims, “Let’s crash that wedding party!” 

Like it’s as easy as that, something they could just walk into, make a commotion, and leave. Like they aren’t dead center in Big Mom’s territory, with hundreds of her children and more soldiers to charge through given they are able to throw their focus off through disturbing the party. 

However, none of that matters to Luffy, and it never will. Chuckles bubble up in Sanji, and somehow, with the way Luffy starts to giggle along with him, it erupts into full on laughter. 

He’s on his back rolling with it, the absurdity of everything getting to him. After he quiets down, Luffy rises and pulls him up with him. Sanji gazes into his black eyes, glittering with determination and adventure, feels himself be drawn into it in the same manner he was two years ago. Luffy’s ambition gives him the confidence that he lacks. No, it gives every one of the Strawhats that confidence. That’s how they’ve overcome so many odds before in the past, how they’ll keep doing so. 

Luffy looks ahead to Sweet City, Whole Cake Chateau in the distance, his expression taking on a more serious aspect. 

The pair of them step out towards it together.

**Author's Note:**

> how does one watch wci and not obsess over sanlu while focusing on homosexual subtext 
> 
> ty to anyone who read !


End file.
